This is one of those books that I knew right away I was going to love!! I’ve marked so many thought provoking passages and things to reflect on. Story of jealousy, identity, obsession, loss/pain. The novel was so weird and disturbing but I loved it! Myrrh is equal parts thought provoking and “wtf am I reading.”

The novel is told through switching POVs told in 3rd person narration. All the characters and their stories come together by the end, it was very well done!

I loved the author’s note saying “horror allows you to shine a light on murky depths.” I think this perfectly sums up how I felt reading the book! It’s horror and disturbing and strange but it has very real issues at the heart of it.

I felt very connected with Cayenne’s feelings of desperation to become a mom. She mentions feeling like what’s the point of her life or contribution to society if she can’t be a mom and have a child of her own. I viewed it in the context not as her saying “women only have value if they become mothers” but in the perspective of someone going through infertility where you’re so desperate to be a mom and get pregnant that you have an identity crisis and question your life purpose. Part of that stems from what you always pictured for your life but also from the message from society as a whole as well. I don’t think the book is saying (and I’m certainly not saying it either) that women should and have to be mothers btw 

Its especially interesting because I think from other things Cayenne says, her timeline narrative is in the 50s/60s but we see this idea of women “only being useful to society as mothers” play out in the US today with the laws being passed. It’s the character’s inner demons and fears based on that message throughout history being pushed onto women!

The book also made me pause and reflect on the ideas of identity, belonging, and family. This is for sure a favorite for April and maybe for the year. Myrrh had me hooked and obsessed from page 1, highly recommend and will be checking out more from Hall!